Charlie Dean, an all-round spin bowler from England, has been called up by Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) to replace Sophie Molineux, who is injured, in their team for the 2025 World Premier League.
Due to a knee injury that would require surgery, Australian left-arm spinner Molineux was unable to play in their home Ashes series against England.
In October and November of previous year, she had used the WBBL to address the knee problem. Despite missing four of the Melbourne Renegades' eleven games, she led them to victory as captain.
The problem resurfaced during Australia's home ODI series against India, which came right after the WBBL. Molineux participated in the series' second and third games, bowling 11 overs and taking one wicket.
She will now be out of play for a longer period of time after missing the trip to New Zealand, which included three more ODIs. In December, Kate Beerworth, a physiotherapist from Australia, stated that "further updates on an anticipated return date" for Molineux would only be given following the operation, which is scheduled for this month.
Prior to the 2025 WPL season, Molineux was signed by RCB. She had played for them during their 2024 championship run, taking 12 wickets at an average of 23.16 in ten games.
Conversely, Dean has not yet made an appearance in the WPL. However, she has taken 46 wickets at an incredible average of 18.19 in 36 Twenty20 Internationals for England. She has only scored once in the first two ODIs of the Women's Ashes while playing for her nation in Australia.
In addition, Dean played 30 games for London Spirit over four seasons starting in 2021 and represented the team in the women's Hundred.